One Piece Odyssey, gameplay analysis for Bandai Namco's new JRPG
One Piece Odyssey
One Piece Odyssey is only the latest in a long, very long list of video games based on the manga of Eiichiro Oda which, with its over one hundred volumes and an anime of extraordinary success, has become over the years a real phenomenon of costume in Japan, gaining enormous popularity even in the West.After the unsuccessful experiment of One Piece: World Seeker, Bandai Namco has decided to shuffle the cards a little and entrust its new transposition to ILCA , the talented development team formerly author of Dragon Quest XI, asking him to create in this case a JRPG that could faithfully and authentically bring the dynamics of Oda's work to the screen.
Well, on the occasion of the Anime Expo 2022 we were able to witness several in-game sequences and here is our timely analysis of the gameplay of One Piece Odyssey.
What is One Piece Odyssey?
One Piece Odyssey, a group with Usopp, Zoro and Luffy Se non you have read our previous One Piece Odyssey special, published in conjunction with the announcement of the game, a quick review is urgently needed. As mentioned, the new tie-in produced by Bandai Namco looks like a JRPG characterized by free exploration phases, a party management consisting of a variable number of characters and fights that take place through a turn-based system.The story, written by Eiichiro Oda himself, sees Monkey D. Luffy and his crewmates lost on a mysterious island after a violent tsunami, therefore committed to reuniting and facing together a new adventure of which we still know little. The authors have ensured that they have done their utmost to ensure that the typical interactions between the Straw Hat and his friends find ample space, as well as the dramatic atmospheres that are often breathed during the most complex clashes.
It is not yet perfectly clear whether One Piece Odyssey boasts an open world structure or not, but it is possible to notice a certain type of vertical development of the environments and the use of an interface that shows any enemies nearby , so that you can choose whether to face them (and obtain the relative rewards) or bypass them, limiting random encounters to a minimum.
The similarities with Dragon Quest XI are clear and extend also and above all to the graphic style: a curious middle way between a classic approach and cel shading, enhanced by pleasant pastel shades and, in general, by an aesthetic that recalls that of the manga, thus giving us a rather original and interesting mix.
Gameplay
One Piece Odyssey, the Gom Gom Gatling The long gameplay video of One Piece Odyssey presented at the Anime Expo 2022 shows for the first time the game in action, although not quite at an early stage of the campaign. in spite of the tips and tutorials that appear on the screen. The control scheme is the typical one, and during the exploratory phases it allows you to move the character, run, jump, interact with the environment, move the camera, open the map and perform the Observation Haki, which increases the perception to identify any points of interest.In the movie we see only Luffy, but in reality the character represents the whole party and we discover it as soon as he comes across one of the signs with exclamation marks, which imply the start of an intermission sequence. In this case it is an overview of the area in which we find ourselves, called King Kong Garden not by chance: a huge gorilla seems to have captured Nami and our goal will be to save her.
One Piece Odyssey, Del Kong Open the pause menu, we discover that the team can be managed in such a way as to put four fighters inside as many main slots and assign the others a support function. So let's see Luffy, Usopp, Sanji and Franky, with Chopper and Robin alongside, but also the relative power levels and the various statistics at that moment between experience, health, tension points, attack, defense and courage.
Another sign (in this case with a magnifying glass icon) makes it clear that we cannot cross the river to reach Nami faster, given the presence of huge and dangerous walruses. So our Luffy takes a side road that involves the use of one of his abilities, the Gom Gom Rocket, with which to hook distant holds to move towards them in an instant.
Combat system
One Piece Odyssey, the interface during the fights After collecting some objects and breaking some vases, the character we control in One Piece Odyssey interacts with a wall to climb on, an operation that is performed automatically and allows him to climb to a raised point on the map. After that the party suddenly finds itself surrounded by enemies and the first clash of the demo kicks off, anticipated by a very short loading and changing the view.As mentioned above, the combat system works in turn and allows to hit specific opponents using all the characters at our disposal, determining the effect of each maneuver on the basis of the "cycle" indicated at the bottom left: technique (sword, green) beats power (fist, pink) that beats speed (gun, orange), which in turn beats technique.
Luffy is the first to attack, with a simple punch, but that's enough to eliminate one of the enemies. He then turns to Sanji, who makes the same move, while a sign warns us that the use of special maneuvers implies the consumption of tension points, which are restored at the beginning of each fight and during the fight. It is the turn of one of the opponents, who hits Franky without too much success only to be eliminated by the blows of Usopp and Franky himself.
As expected, the victory translates into obtaining money and experience, with the latter leveling up all the party characters by enhancing their characteristics. A quick test of the Observation Haki, rendered on the screen as a sort of "negative" bubble that serves, as mentioned, to identify any points of interest, and continues with the exploration of the map.
Il One Piece Odyssey combat system In the video we see at this point a rundown of the repertoire available to each character in the team, with the consumption of tension points for each single special move indicated. Then already from the second fight this feature finally finds its place: Luffy executes a devastating Gom Gom Gatling and wipes out all the opponents at once.
Too bad that the next fight is more complex, starting to introduce the thickness of the combat system when our units suffer some kind of poisoning or blockage. The formula seems pretty clear and solid, however, and it's a shame that the cutscene ends before the decisive confrontation with Del Kong, the huge gorilla who captured Nami.
Taking the Dragon Quest experience as its basis. XI, One Piece Odyssey looks like a very solid and interesting JRPG, equipped with a combat system that promises a certain strategic depth and limited but fascinating exploratory phases, which will allow us to discover the unprecedented scenario of the game. The images also reveal the presence of environmental puzzles, characters not yet shown on the screen and, in short, many elements that could contribute to the success of the project.
